Surveyor Negligence – Can I sue for financial losses?
Buying a new home is always an exciting time in anyone’s life and is a long-term commitment with plenty at stake for the buyer. Before anyone buys a home, they’ll inevitably employ a surveyor to warn of any problems or defects that would affect the value of the home and any potential cost of repairs.
A surveyor’s job depends on what the terms of the retainer are. There are different levels of survey and you get what you pay for.
Valuation report – This will really only provide buyers with an indication of the proper open market value of the property. Lenders will generally insist on the buyer getting at least a valuation report and the report is largely to protect the mortgage lender in case the buyer defaults on the mortgage and the home has to be sold. The report ought to point out any obvious significant structural problems that affect the price but the buyer cannot expect the survey to outline anything other than major issues.
Homebuyers Report – This is a middle ground option. The surveyor will assess the property and identify any major issues such as structural problems or damp. The surveyor should also report on the general condition of the house including the state of the decoration, guttering and services. Where unable to inspect, the surveyor should say so and may recommend further investigations e.g. a specialist drainage or electrical report where there are concerns about the services in the property. The report will also value the property for insurance and mortgage purposes.
Structural Survey – This is the most comprehensive form of survey and goes into more detail about all possible issues with the property, both minor and major. This is the most expensive report, but will provide the greatest peace of mind to a buyer and ought to ensure all significant issues are identified to help the buyer make an informed decision. However, the report still includes certain exclusions, especially where it is impossible or impractical to inspect parts of the property. The surveyor will not generally lift flooring and does not generally warrant the condition of areas which have not been suspected.
A structural survey ought to deal with cracked walls, plumbing problems, roof defects, subsidence or unsafe foundations. The problem is that much that can go wrong in a house is not necessarily apparent on inspection e.g. wood worm, or dry rot. Often disputes with surveyors arise where the surveyor says he was unable to inspect because parts of the property were not readily accessible e.g. tiny loft opening or parts of the roof were not visible from the ground level.
So how can you tell when a surveyor has been negligent?
The starting point is to consider which survey you have paid for. You can expect more to be uncovered in a full structural survey than a valuation report. Whilst exclusions in the small print may help the surveyor to escape liability, remember any exclusion clause has to be reasonable to be relied upon and must not conflict with the underlying purpose of the contract between the parties. The more obvious the flaws the more likely it is the surveyor will be negligent or in breach of contract.
Surveyors will generally have insurance to cover against any losses through professional negligence. Losing out financially as the result of someone else’s professional negligence can be frustrating, so no matter what form of survey you had, talk to us today about surveyor negligence to see if we can help you recoup your losses.
